N Srinivasan's appointment as chairman not in the best interests of ICC: Cricket Association of Bihar

Aditya Verma, secretary of Cricket Association of Bihar had taken N Srinivasan to court during the spot-fixing scandal Photo Courtesy: DNA

Jun 26, 2014

The International Cricket Council (ICC) officially appointed N Srinivasan as the first chairman of the ICC as the Full Council consisting of 52 member nations approved the amendments to ICC’s Memorandum and Articles of Association. But Srinivasan’s move to the top of the ICC tier has been all that smooth. Apart from dealing with the Supreme Court, Srinivasan legal troubles have been largely due to the secretary of Cricket Association of Bihar (CAB), Aditya Verma . Verma had shot a letter to the Head of Legal, ICC Iain Higgins stating the violations in the Code of Ethics in the appointment of Srinivasan as its chairman.

“It is a mandatory requirement that any Director (as defined at Clause 1.1 of the Code) shall: “[..] act in an honest and ethical manner. In order to facilitate the transparent operation of the ICC, conduct that gives the appearance of impropriety will also be unacceptable. Directors shall not engage in any conduct that in any way denigrates the ICC or harms its public image. No funds or assets of the ICC may be used for any unlawful purpose, and no Director may engage in unlawful conduct.” (Clause 2.1.) and “[…] at all times serve the interests of the ICC and the sport of cricket as a whole.” (Clause 3.2). Mr Srinivasan, being a Director of the ICC under the Code, was bound by the terms of the Code . We believe that Mr Srinivasan has violated Clause 2.1 of the Code on a number of occasions, having acted in a manner which denigrates the ICC and harms its public image. Furthermore, his continued embroilment in the matter referred to below does not serve the interests of the ICC and the sport of cricket as a whole” read one of Verma’s points in the letter.

Verma also highlighted the role of Srinivasan’s son-in-law during the spot-fixing controversy and the legal battles Cricket Association of Bihar waged against BCCI.

“I want to draw your kind attention against violation of code of ethics by ICC and president of BCCI , N Srinivasan. I have already sent three letters to ICC officials regarding the honourable Supreme Court of India’s 28.3.14 order. The highest court of India has stopped Srinivasan from discharging his duties as BCCI president,” Verma wrote in as separate letter to the ethics officer.